Fans always say they laughed and they cried while reading my books. And I tell them that I laughed and cried while writing them.
What surprised me most while writing 'The Monogram Murders' was that everything I needed seemed to arrive in my head exactly when I needed it.
I actually credit Twitter with fine-tuning some joke-writing skills. I still feel like I'm working at it.
I've seen a range of children's personalities, so it's easier to write about them without patronising them, I think.
I started writing my own plays, and I would sell out, but after everything was said and done, I'd break even. That's being successful.
So here I am writing my zombie story and my lead character decides to betray me.
My urge to write is an urge not to self-expressionism but to self-transcendence. My work is both bigger and smaller than I am.
My first job is to write the characters as full and authentic people as well as I can.
I wrote a script. I actually enjoyed writing it more than acting. It's about the Irish rebellion of 1920, which is a fascinating period and place for me.
I don't take part in texting and those other things myself, so I don't really know if people put as much thought into messaging as they used to into writing letters.
No, originally I thought that writing articles would keep me from having to see a psychiatrist, but I became even more depressed as a result.
I am always urging my students to honor their writing practice, to set up a schedule.
I'm not a fan - this is a personal preference - I'm not a fan of tour-de-force writing. I admire it, but it's not where my inclination is. I want to hide.
The first writing I did was short short stories for a newspaper syndicate for which I was paid five dollars a piece on publication.
I started writing serious books so late because I knew I'd be accused of riding on my father's coattails.
I grew up writing about the paranormal, and I blame too many Saturday mornings watching 'Scooby Doo.'
When a song came on the radio that I wanted to learn, my mother would quickly write down the lyrics for me. Soon after, I would be singing it.
I wanted to write about Jews in Montana, so I went there by plane and bus, only to discover that there are no Jews in Montana. It didn't deter me.
I start with a tingle, a kind of feeling of the story I will write. Then come the characters, and they take over, they make the story.
I really enjoyed playing Freddie Cork. People are always scared to approach me because of the character I played in 'Brotherhood.' The writing was very smart.
The Indian diaspora is a wonderful place to write from, and I am lucky to be part of it.
